


Back to Beck

by Nicolemoon8



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Bucky Barnes & Peter Parker Friendship, Bucky Barnes & Sam Wilson Friendship, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Interrogation, Irondad & Spiderson, Manipulative Quentin Beck, Not Spider-Man: Far From Home Compliant, Not Spider-Man: Far From Home Mid-Credits Scene Compliant, Peter Parker Has Anxiety, Protective Bucky Barnes, Protective Sam Wilson, Protective Tony Stark, Quentin Beck Being a Jerk, Tony Stark Lives, sam wilson & peter parker friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-08
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:21:54
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,830
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27963710
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nicolemoon8/pseuds/Nicolemoon8
Summary: Months after the disaster that was London, Sam and Bucky capture a Quentin Beck who appears to be very much alive. Tony is still piecing together everything  that happened after the Snap and subsequent recovery time. But one thing they can all agree on is that they'll have Peter's back this time around.
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes & Peter Parker & Sam Wilson, Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 3
Kudos: 112





	1. A Man With a Plan

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to ignore plot holes, I sure did. Although it got me thinking why didn't Sam or Bucky help during FFH?? Anyways, Tony snapped but survived, just.like.canon. This is just self indulgent hurt/comfort/backstory reveal stuff I love to read. Enjoy!

As soon as Tony woke up after the Snap, he had a lot of information to process. Firstly, he had no arm, which in the grand scheme of things made him lucky that was all he didn't have. Secondly, he had been in a coma for over a month and then in and out of awareness for another two weeks after that. Then they waited a bit longer to tell him the good stuff or rather the panic-attack-inducing not so good stuff, like how Peter went to Europe and had to deal with both Fury and Beck hijacking his school trip. And even after Tony recovered and he was back to living the retired life with his family, he still found bits and pieces of information he wasn't given after he woke up. Like right now for instance.

"Wait, I thought he died?" Tony asked from where he sat next to Peter in the conference room, with Sam and Bucky standing across the table. Tony hated the silent conversations they and others could have since he obviously wasn't told everything that he should have been.

"We thought he did." Sam said slowly, eyes connecting with Peter's for a moment before turning back to Stark. "Our intelligence read no life signs at the scene at the time."

"Well your intelligence wasn't very good then if the man is sitting alive twelve floors below us then huh."

"It doesn't matter what we thought then, it only matters that we find out what we need to know for now." Bucky was eyeing a very quiet Peter who had yet to say anything since being told Quentin Beck was alive and captured by the two standing Avengers in the room.

Tony turned to his silent kid, trying to figure out what he might be thinking about all this. Tony figured it was best to work under the assumption that he was only ever given the cliff notes version of events that happened while he was otherwise indisposed. He might not know everything that had happened but he knew his kid and he could absolutely tell shit had gone down with all the added up little changes in Peter he'd noticed.

As soon as Tony had heard the first utterance from Pepper that Peter's school trip didn't go quite as planned, he demanded the full story and then, after visiting hours, found all the undamaged footage (which surprisingly was patchy at best) from Karen and Edith, all from his hospital bed. He had needed to see for himself what he knew he could have prevented. He had gotten his kid back, whole and alive, only to wake up and find out he could have easily lost him again while he was unable to lift a finger. It was nauseating to think about and even knowing the kid was fine but with more traumatic scars left knots in his stomach.

It was hard to tell sometimes, whether it was the Snap and subsequent Battle or the chaos caused by Beck that had changed his kid so much. It didn't really matter in the grand scheme of things which one stole the boy's ever present sparkle from his eyes, or which caused the kid to smile just a little slower than he used to. It only mattered that Peter was changed, marked by more horrifying events in the long list he had already racked up in so few years. Tony would do just about anything to bring back the lightness the kid exuded from when they first met all those years ago. And that's why it was killing him now to look at Peter and see a completely changed kid, a kid that looked far older than he was.

"Has he said anything?" Peter finally spoke up, his face almost completely blank besides his slightly furrowed eyebrows.

"Only crazy talk. He's got a few too many marbles loose if you ask me." Sam said, trying to keep his tone light as he comfortably crossed his arms.

"Also, he was wearing the tackiest outfit. I might be behind the times but really, he'd have to be crazy to wear a fish tank for a helmet." Bucky added, trying to tamp down the growing concern in his stomach. He wasn't there for Peter until things had settled a bit in the aftermath of London but he'd been around the kid long enough since then to know he seemed a bit spooked by this guy. A few months back, he and Sam had helped debrief the kid about his run-in with Beck and had shown him how to write a mission report, mostly to try to distract the kid long enough to leave Tony's comatose side for a bit. The pair knew the kid had left some stuff out, who didn't, but maybe they should have pushed a bit more.

"Really? A fishbowl? He is crazy." Tony had pulled up a couple recent pictures on his StarkPad.

Peter's grim mood seemed to extinguish the light atmosphere pretty quickly. "Do we know what he wants? Or how he survived? EDITH she...she confirmed his kill. She said it was real! I know my Spidey Sense was acting up but -"

"Wait your Peter Tingle wasn't working? Since when? Is it now?" Tony immediately interrupted, sitting up a bit straighter.

Peter hardly spared the man a glance as he tried to keep down his own panic. "It's been off since I came back." He said off-handedly, before continuing on like it was nothing. Sam and Bucky noticed how the kid's answer seemed to send his father figure into a mild panic of his own. "He was shot, I saw him die." Peter said with grim finality.

"It's something we're gonna have to look into Kid. There were enough drones and surveillance videos we should be able to piece some more information together." Bucky tried to reassure the boy.

"Actually, Spider-Kid did a good job destroying a ton of the drones. A lot of footage was lost through physical damage but also the coding that sends the footage to remote storage was corrupted at some point." Tony said, feeling a little better that he at least knew something he could bring to the table, even if it wasn't the best news.

"So we'll go through what is left but with fresh eyes and see what we find."

"And?" Peter asked.

"And besides that, we'll retrace his steps from where we caught him. It's gonna be a lot of ground-work for a little while until we get some answers Pete." Sam said, shrugging his shoulders but confident in the plan.

"What are we gonna do with Beck? I'm sure he has a price he'd talk for. He's gotta want something." Tony asked, still not liking the tension strewn across Peter's whole body, evident in how still and upright he was sitting.

The shared glances between Bucky and Sam didn't go unnoticed, and Peter's stomach wasn't the only one to drop when they both turned to face him.

"Shit." Peter mumbled.

"What? He wants Peter? Well, we all know that's not happening. You're right Feather Face, that guy is crazy." Tony knew he was rambling a bit but sue him. Twelve floors away was close enough for his kid to be near a psychopath.

The room was quiet for a minute, tension thrumming beneath the silence.

"I'll talk to him."

"Peter, you don't have -"

"Absolutely not." Tony nearly growled out. His Dad instincts were going wild and he was not about to allow Peter anywhere near the man that left him bloody and broken.

Peter swivelled in his chair to face Tony better. "You can come with if you want, but this is the fastest way to get him to talk. And the more he talks, the more he's gonna say. I'm sorry, but I'm doing this." His even tone and firm eye contact just about left Tony speechless. It was times like these that reminded him that Peter wasn’t just a child, but a hero too. It was so easy to see the man Peter would become when he talked and acted with such determination. The confusing mix between sadness and pride at the kid's words left him staring at the boy. He just wished he didn't have to grow up so fast.

"Fine. But you can bet your ass I'm coming with you. And Bird Brain and Wolfie are gonna be there for backup okay?"

"Okay." The reply was quiet but steady.


	2. Into the Lion's Den

They walked in two pairs towards the interrogation and holding room. Sam had given him some pointers on how to word things or twist questions around but Peter figured he’d be too nervous to remember specifics. His game plan was to go in, stay loose and try not to let Beck mess with him too much. Seemed like a solid plan to him, but he wasn’t exactly going to share it with the others. Especially with Mr. Stark who was not afraid to show his displeasure with the situation if the little huffs and offers to spend time in the lab instead were anything to go off of.

“It’s gonna be fine Mr. Stark, he doesn't have any tech or weapons. He’s nothing without them.” Peter tried to be as reassuring as possible. He knew what it was like being on the other side and feeling helpless about a situation you knew wasn’t going to change.

“I know Kid, but I still don’t like it. I know you beat him before but I still read through the damage reports and I gotta say, he wasn’t exactly a small threat.” Peter cringed at the reminder of the damage and destruction he inadvertently caused. Gosh, it was all such a mess. He should have figured it wouldn’t be that easy to move on from.

Tony of course noticed the grimace of guilt that ran across Peter’s face. He lowered his voice as he continued, “I also read your injury reports Bud, as reassuring as your ‘I didn’t break anything besides some ribs’ recounting was I figured I’d get a better idea of what really happened out there. I’ll say it just one more time, you don’t have to go in there if you don’t want to.”

Looking up just slightly into the man’s eyes that he saw as his dad, Peter saw nothing but warm concern and love. It helped relax him a bit as they all paused outside the heavy door. “I don’t have to but I’m going to. I really do appreciate all the outs though, you’ve got the ‘my dad says I can’t go’ act down pat.” He easily teased and was glad to see the tension in the older man’s shoulders ease up a bit as he laughed.

“You guys are precious, really. Mind if we get this over with though? I think we’ll all feel better when we can get freak-o out of here and locked far far away.” Sam said, gesturing towards the door.

“Hey, was that a Shrek reference?” Peter asked with a smile. He was glad he had no trouble falling into an easy rhythm when it came to Bucky and Sam. They were like a mix between mother hens and sassy older brothers and they always made him feel like an equal which he really appreciated.

He only received an eye roll from the pair which was exactly what he expected. Mr. Stark didn’t bother to reply either but he clapped him on the back, leaving a steady hand on his shoulder.

“Alright Underoos. I’m following your lead in there. Sam and Bucky will be in the connecting room if needed. You ready?”

“Ready. And uh, just ignore whatever he says okay? He really likes to twist things around.” Peter added a bit sheepishly. Although his dad looked a bit more on edge he gave him a nod in agreement.

Peter pushed open the heavy door that led him into the room with a single occupant sitting chained at the table. It looked remarkably like a tv show interrogation room, although he knew this one was as high tech as they came and loaded with vibranium reinforcements. Peter started regulating his breathing as soon as Quentin Beck looked up at him and smiled. He remained standing with Tony just to his right.

Peter stared at Beck as the man stared right back for a long minute, both assessing the other. Memories tried rushing forward in Peter’s mind but he quickly shoved them away as he focused on the task at hand.

“Hey Kid.” Beck broke the silence first. He looked a bit rougher than the last time Peter saw him, and that was saying something since he last witnessed the man die.

“What are you doing here?” Peter figured it was best to be as straightforward as possible and not allow any deviating from the necessary topics.

“You can ask your buddies, they’re the ones that brought me here. Although are they really that good of friends if they left you as the only on-call superhero? Couldn’t even have one week off, huh Kid?”

“I’m pretty sure I would have had a lot more time off if you hadn’t come along. You and your associates that is. All of which are either locked up or dead of course.” Peter remarked, crossing his arms as he looked down at the man across from him. He knew Bucky would be proud of him for slipping in that reminder so smoothly.

“Well,” Beck started with a grin, “we both know dead doesn’t always mean dead, right?”

That was the part that was bothering Peter the most. He saw the man die, and then saw it again and again in the nightmares that followed. He heard the man’s heart beat slow and blood stop flowing. And even more so, EDITH had confirmed it. She couldn’t have lied. She said there were no more illusions...but if she was wrong about that then…

Tony wasn’t the only one to notice the kid tense as he must have been thinking things through. And the growing maniacal smile from the mad man seemed to confirm it. “Oh, Peter. I thought you said I couldn’t trick you anymore.” Beck laughed as he saw the tightly controlled expression on the kid’s face waver for a second. Peter took a step forward in reaction, only causing the man to laugh more.

Tony had been still and silent and neither occupant had even glanced his way since he entered the room with Peter but he moved forward and placed a hand on the kid’s elbow, just as a reminder he was there and Peter was still in control.

Peter took a breath as quietly as he could and schooled his features again. He didn’t bother asking the ‘how’ question he so desperately wanted answers to. He had to switch topics if he wanted Beck to keep talking.

“Why show up again? Why New York?”

“We just had so much fun last time. Maybe we could get another drink, catch up like old times. How are MJ and Ned doing? I heard you got the girl, good job kid. I knew you could do it.” His false overly-friendly tone made Tony’s stomach turn. This guy seemed to be closer to Peter than he had first thought, he even knew about the kid’s girlfriend, and what was that about drinks?

Sam and Bucky both watched on from the room next door, swearing lightly at the mention of familiar names.

“Sam.” Bucky started as the other man took a seat at one of the computers in the room.

“Already on it. I’ll get SHIELD on both the kids, May too.”

Peter knew he couldn’t let this guy get to him but the almost soft look he was getting was so familiar to when he first befriended the man it made his chest sting with the betrayal he thought he’d gotten over. It disgusted him how naive he’d been at the time, but he knew better now. He also knew his team had his back and would be working just as hard to figure out Beck’s plans. 

“C’mon Pete, take a seat. Then we can really chat.” Beck offered, one hand gesturing slightly towards the chair across from him.

Peter slowly stepped forward again and took a seat. He knew he wasn't supposed to give the man any form of control but figured it might make the man complacent enough to be helpful. From up close Peter could see the dark circles and slight hollowness in the man’s face. At least he knew if this was an illusion, Beck wouldn’t let himself look so disheveled due to the classic narcissism and such.

Beck squinted at the boy, his smile never leaving his face as he leaned in. "Are you sure you're even awake Peter?"

Peter's breath immediately stuttered, his heart started racing. He was thrown back a couple months to the first time Beck had asked something similar while he was stuck in what felt like a never ending loop of illusions. No, he couldn't think about that right now, even if that very question had been hovering in the back of his mind since the moment Bucky and Sam told him Beck was back. What if...no. No more tech means no more illusions. This was real. It had to be.

Beck's smile turned from faux concern to a genuinely malicious smirk as panic washed over the kid sitting across from him.

Tony stepped forward again from where he had situated himself out of the way in the corner of the room. It physically hurt his chest seeing his kid being messed with, even more so as he struggled to hide it. He stood by Peter's side, hand settling on the boy's shoulder, willing him to calm down and refocus. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately if it got Beck's attention away from his kid for a moment, the mad man noticed the gesture and focused on Tony.

"It must kill you knowing that you brought the kid back, only to leave him high and dry when he needed guidance the most. I think we did pretty well though, didn't we Peter?" Beck asked as he turned from Tony to the kid. "We made a pretty good team, after all you're the smartest guy in the room." He winked at the kid and reveled when he saw the boy's control crumble just a little bit more. Wow, Beck thought, this was maybe more fun the second time around.

Sam and Bucky could easily see things weren't going quite as planned, but when did they ever? 

"We should pull him." Bucky suggested, his eyebrows furrowed in concern.

"Give him a minute, he could still pull it together."

"Sam, the kid's looking traumatized all over again. You don't have to be a genius to know the guy's eatin' at him."

"Tony will step in if he needs to. We have to trust them."

Back in the room, Tony had to bite his teeth together to keep from eviscerating the smug bastard in front of him. He gave Peter a minute to respond and when he didn't he figured it'd be fine to step in. "That's enough, we'll be going. Nice not knowing ya. I'm sure you'll really enjoy the accommodations where you're going next." Tony squeezed the kid's shoulder, trying to get him to stand up to leave but the boy held firm. "Kid…"

"What do you want Beck? Why'd you come back here?" Peter asked, his voice steady again but with anger and frustration evident in his eyes.

Beck leaned back in his chair and shrugged casually, “Maybe I just missed you Peter. We made a good team. Before you made me have to kill you and your friends, of course. Although the whole train thing seemed to have worked out fine for you, and you did amazing on that bridge too. Wish I could say the same.” He joked with an exaggerated ‘what can you do’ expression.

The pair stared at each other as the tension in the silent room was at an all time high. It was like the two were the only ones in the universe, neither’s focus on anything but the other. After a moment, Peter pushed his chair back as he stood up. He scowled at the man that had caused so much trouble.

"We were never a team, Beck."

“Maybe, maybe not. At least I was around to have your back, no offense Stark. Don’t worry though, I made sure to take Petey over here under my wing while you couldn't.” The man’s smug smile had returned and Tony didn’t think he’d ever wanted to knock someone’s teeth out more before.

“I’m not worried,” Tony said as he and Peter both turned to leave, “I’m here now and I’m not going anywhere.”

“Good, good. I’m sure he’ll need you by his side before too long.” Beck finished and the last thing the standing pair saw as they left the room was the man's sly smirk.


	3. Beck is Back, Once Again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have no clue how the one story I had zero plans or outline for became the easiest (and longest) one to write?? Anyways, this is the final chapter and I do not currently have plans to continue although I never say "never".

The first thing Tony asked as the two pairs regrouped in the conference room was, “Do you have eyes on the kid’s friends?”

“SHIELD’s on it.” Sam nodded.

“Yeah, cuz SHIELD was so helpful the first time round.” Peter’s sarcastic comment took everyone a little off guard, being unused to cynicism from their literal ray of sun.

“Fury’s actually Fury again, I don’t expect there to be much room for error now Bud.” Bucky said as he watched Peter drop himself into a chair across the table. Man, the kid looked like a puppet with his strings cut and that did not sit well with Bucky. He’d have to make sure the kid got extra lasagna at dinner to cheer him up.

“So Beck’s definitely fixated on you.” Tony said, turning his chair to gesture at Peter. “He was really enjoying bringing up the past. By the way, those nicknames are not for sale, they were giving me the heebie jeebies when he said ‘em. Only I should get to call you Kid and Pete.” Peter rolled his eyes lightly and ignored Bucky’s huffing at that statement. 

“Yeah, he brought up how familiar we got but it was never about me last time. I was just a side character in his wacko story. I don’t know why he...invested so much time in me. It was all about him wanting recognition, wanting everyone to know his name.”

“Gosh, some people and their egos, am I right?” Tony joked, trying everything to keep the atmosphere light while they discussed things. He already knew this whole day would likely bring more nightmares for the kid. He’d just have to keep a closer eye on him, not that he didn’t already. And with Sam and Bucky on the kid’s team too, he figured he wouldn’t be the only one. Tony could read the concern in the two Avengers, even if they were doing a good job of playing it cool for Peter, which Tony appreciated.

“The dude definitely seemed just as focused on you as he was on himself.” Sam added, trying to assess the earlier conversation and what it all meant. “I know a few months back you said Faux Fury introduced you guys and you teamed up once to take the Fire Elemental down but how close did you guys get?” It was sort of the question everyone wanted to know. It wasn’t hard for them to draw their own conclusions, not from Peter who had unsurprisingly been pretty tight lipped about it all but from Beck who certainly had no qualms about talking.

Peter warred with himself. He knew he had gotten drawn in so easily to the fast friendship and even mentorship Beck provided him at the time. He didn’t have any Avengers backing him, and he wasn’t sure Tony was ever going to wake up so he latched onto Beck like the pathetic little kid he was. He hated himself for it and he certainly didn’t want to admit it now to a room of heroes who he was sure wouldn’t have made the same mistakes. 

“Well, Fury was being an ass and Beck was the complete opposite. We fought the Water Elemental in Venice, were formally introduced then talked a bit, we fought the Fire Elemental in Prague and hung out a while after that and then it all went sideways in Berlin.” The silence in the room drove him to keep talking. “He was the only one around...but it was all fake.” He quietly admitted, not willing to look up and see disappointed faces.

“Kid...It’s okay. You were all alone across the world, being pushed into something you didn’t want. I’m actually proud of you for accepting help and working together, even if it didn’t end well afterwards. None of it was your fault, Roo. There’s a lot of people responsible for the things that happened but you’re not one of them, okay?” Tony drew Peter in close for a hug, unwilling to see the beat expression on his kid’s face for one more second. Bucky and Sam were silent but agreed completely. They knew they were both partially to blame for not being able to be back-up for the kid in time but they had apologized and vowed to be there moving forward, like right now.

Peter allowed himself to wallow in his dad’s arms, feeling safer than he had all day. He took a few steadying breaths before pushing back to continue the discussion they were having. He wanted to believe what Tony had said about things not being his fault but either way, he was going to make sure he wasn’t the reason any more people got hurt.

“I don't know how helpful talking to him really was." Peter said, trying to get the analysis and conversation back on track.

"I think it let us know more than what we started with. He emphasized you guys being a team, I think there might be something there." Sam added.

"Yeah," Tony scoffed, "and then he threw in the whole attempted murder 'sorry not sorry' bit. I know a little of what went down on the bridge but what train was he talking about?"

None of the Avengers liked the way Peter immediately stiffened as the train was referenced. The kid's eyes glazed over and everyone in the room was familiar enough with flashbacks to know what they look like. Both Sam and Tony stood and took a step closer to Peter while Bucky stayed back a bit, not wanting to crowd the kid especially when he started gasping for breath.

"Woah, Pete, Buddy. You're okay. You're in Avengers Tower. It's me, Mr. Stark. It's Dad. Sam and Bucky are here too." Tony kneeled in front of Peter's chair, making all his movements slow as he reached a hand up to hold the boy's face gently.

As soon as Tony mentioned the train, Peter was falling, being dragged back into his own mind. He hated the feeling, he knew exactly what the hazy vision and swooping sensation meant for him, it was always followed by panic and terror. He was caught, just like he was all those months ago, in a never ending loop of pure adrenaline and fear. The illusions were practically the same as the ones he believed back then, but now with newly added faces. He saw Bucky being torn apart, and Sam, god Sam was being dragged down, down, down. Peter thought he heard his voice but it sounded far away.

"Peter! Pete, do you feel Tony's hand on your face? Feel your chest expanding and retracting? Focus on some big deep breaths while you sit with us in the conference room." Sam said as he gave Tony a nod, wanting to reassure the man as well.

Peter was quiet but his eyebrows scrunched together enough to tell them he was trying to focus. "I- I don't know-..." He slowly raised his own hand to cover the one he realized was resting on his cheek. He concentrated on feeling the familiar rough calloused knuckles. His breathing was still shaky but was coming and going in more regular intervals.

"There you go, Pete. You're doing good, keep it up hun." It tore Tony up every single time he had to see his kids in pain. It was awful knowing a piece of your heart was allowed out in the world where horrible things happened. Tony wiped the single tear that fell down Peter's face as he seemed to resurface.

Peter's eyes, brighter with recognition, caught Tony's before the man was dragging him close to hold again. Since Tony was still kneeling in front of him, all Peter had to do was drop his weight forward and be wrapped in firm arms. He turned his head to see both Bucky and Sam a few steps away, stances alert and earnestly ready to help however needed.

Peter hated worrying everyone. He hated how weak he was. He hated how safe he felt in Tony's arms. He hated that Bucky and Sam would do anything to help him. He hated it all.

"I hate him." Peter admitted so, so quietly.

"Baby…" In all the years Tony had known Peter, he never once heard him say he hated anyone or anything, besides papercuts.

"I do! I was so stupid and needy and he was so nice and funny! He listened to me and helped me figure stuff out but he lied and shot me and hit me with a stupid train! And I didn’t even speak Dutch!"

It was safe to say everyone was a bit stunned by the angry outburst, not to mention confused.

"You were shot??"

"I'm more interested in how Dutch factors in."

"Peter...I don't want to cause another flashback, okay buddy? But I'd really like you to explain what happened with the train. You're scaring me a bit here Kid."

When could Peter ever deny Tony? Tony, whose eyes were always deep and soft and nothing but adoring even when he was being chewed out for doing something stupid, whose eyes pleaded with him now to tell him what really happened if only so his own mind didn't come up with worse explanations.

Peter leaned back and took a second to calm himself down from all the emotions swirling together, he knew triggering a second flashback or panic attack was a very real possibility at the moment.

Sam, Bucky and Tony all shared a glance over Peter's head, seeing only care and concern equally reflected back.

"After I gave Beck EDITH, he impersonated Fury and he used the tech to mess with me. He...I was trapped in the illusions and he tricked me again into telling him who knew about what he was actually up to. Um, after that I sorta ended up on the tracks of a bullet train heading to the Netherlands…?" He voice trailed off in a higher pitch.

He watched his dad's face get paler as he explained but by the end he wasn't sure he'd ever seen his face so white, and that was saying something since he'd seen the man in a coma for two months. Peter peeked over to gauge the other's reactions and wasn't met with much better. 

Sam opened and closed his mouth, not sure exactly what to say. And Bucky, yikes, he had that pinched expression he got every time Peter needed patching up after a bad patrol.

"'Kid, I mean this with as much love as possible, but what the actual fuck." Tony took a seat in the chair next to Peter's, his knees creaking as he moved.

"Yeah, it hurt." Peter mumbled as he avoided eye contact.

"Jesus. I'm gonna have a heart attack. I can literally feel my blood pressure rising every time you open your mouth.” The kid actually had the audacity to look sheepish as Tony said that. Tony couldn’t help but shake his head in pure exasperation. “I was told you took the lava monster down, you figured out Beck was bad and then you caught a ride with Happy to London.” He tried to keep the accusation out of his tone, he really did, but he wasn’t lying when he said his blood pressure was rising.

“I mean, that is what happened. Just, maybe like, a bit simplified?”

“Wow kid, revisionist history much? Did a bit of editing, trimmed a few details, didn’t want to include any important details?”

“They weren’t important at the time!” Peter tried to defend but the anger he saw on Tony’s face told him maybe he shouldn’t have.

“I beg. to. differ. You were hit by a speed train and what I can only imagine as serious injuries occurred, you somehow ended up in the Netherlands with no one knowing your whereabouts and then proceeded not to tell us any of it. Do I about have that right?”

“Tony, calm down. The punk definitely shouldn’t have omitted as much as he did when he reported in after,” Bucky said as he sent a scolding glance in Peter’s direction for making his own blood pressure rise, “but the kid’s sitting in front of us. He’s fine now and we have a slightly more pressing matter at hand.”

“I hate to agree with Bucky, really, but he’s right. We can revisit the kid’s storytelling issues later.” Sam ignored the indignant squawk from Peter as he tried getting the group back on track. 

Tony was still upset and fuming and a bit terrified at the information he was getting about his kid after the fact but he knew Sam and Bucky were right. Tony turned to Peter and couldn’t resist giving the boy a forgiving shoulder squeeze, and if he left his hand settled there where he could be reminded his kid was alive and okay, well no one felt the need to mention it. Tony had long ago been unable to resist the kid who had a way of looking like a sulky teenager and a kicked puppy at the same time.

“We’ll be circling back to the train and other things you may have felt the need to leave out, and I don’t care that it happened months ago, you’re getting a visit from Cho. But for now, we have Beck to look into. Maybe try to find some recent activity, catch a lead, what do you say?” Tony asked Peter.

Peter looked at Sam, Bucky and Tony. He was glad he had them on his team. Things were so different now than they were even three months ago, in many ways better and in some worse. He had Beck to deal with and a lot of unanswered questions, but who better than the earth’s mightiest heroes could figure things out. 

“You’re right. We’ve got work to do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hmm, wonder what Beck's got planned....
> 
> Guess it's like a choose your own adventure! Let me know what you think his evil plans might include!


End file.
